Following three other companies before it, Hitachi has admitted to price fixing LCD displays, most of which were sold to Dell and Motorola.
Over the last few months, LG, Sharp and Chunghwa Picture Tubes have each admitted to price fixing the LCD market and were forced to pay fines ranging from $65 million USD for Chunghwa, to $400 million USD for LG, the largest group of the three.
According to the Department of Justice, Hitachi will cooperate with the ongoing investigation and will pay a $31 million USD fine for the price fixing of “TFT-LCD sold to Dell for use in desktop monitors and notebook computers from April 1, 2001, through March 31, 2004.”
“Hitachi joins three other multinational companies who have admitted to their involvement in fixing prices for LCD panels sold to U.S. companies and that have already paid criminal fines totaling more than $585 million,” added Scott D. Hammond, Acting Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department’s Antitrust Division. “This case should send a strong message to multinational companies operating in the United States that when it comes to enforcing the U.S. antitrust laws we mean business.”
Result for: tubes
The giant video sharing site YouTube has removed a few video clips that had prompted Turkish authorities to Block access to the site in January. The company hopes the move will lead the Turkish authorities to open access to the site in a timely fashion.
In a statement the site says, “we reviewed the videos that led to the most recent ban on access and removed them because of their content, which violate YouTube’s content policy.”
The clips, which Turkish authorities alleged were disrespectful to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, are now removed but the site remains blocked. Under Turkish law, it is a federal crime to even insult Ataturk.
Result for: tubes
In an effort to become more environmental friendly, Sony has announced that they will be starting a new series line of green HDTVs beginning with the BRAVIA JE1.
The JE1 is the inaugural TV from the line and is a 32 inch LCD. Sony promises it uses about 70 percent less power over the course of a year by using efficient fluorescent backlights and more efficient screen filters. The JEI uses less lighting tubes than a standard HDTV by “generating more light and allowing more existing light to go through.”
The products used in the set itself is actually made from recycled plastic, Styrofoam, and optical film used from previous HDTVs that have hit their lifespan.
Other specifications of the TV are mid-range, including 720p output, static contrast ratio of 2,500:1, two HDMI inputs, a digital TV tuner and other standard inputs.
The TV will ship to Japan on July 25th and retail for the equivalent of $1,389 USD. There was no word on a North American release.
